Suspects due in court for possession of a prohibited firearm and unrefined platinum powder

The vigilance by members of Operation Restore led to the arrest of an 18 year old male for the possession of a prohibited firearm and ammunition in Acacia Street, Philippi East, Sunday evening at about 21:00.

The members were busy with patrols in the Philippi East policing precinct when they heard gunshots going off near to where they were patrolling. They drove in the direction of the sound of the gunshots and saw a suspect running with a firearm in his hand. The members chased the suspect and arrested him in possession of a pistol without a serial number.

The suspect is due to make a court appearance in the Athlone Magistrate court on Wednesday 2022-08-10 on a charge of possession of a prohibited firearm and ammunition.

In an unrelated matter, members of the Economic Infrastructure Task Team arrested two suspects aged 30 and 50 on a charge of possession of unrefined platinum powder extracted from catalytical converters with a mass of 35 kilogram and an undisclosed amount of cash at a scrap metal premises in Maitland on Friday 2022-08-05. The suspects could not produce a precious metal certificate when the members conducted a compliance inspection at the premises. The street value of the powder is estimated at about R50 000.

The suspects made their court appearance in Cape Town today on the mentioned charge.

Source: South African Police Service